Yen was completely consumed by the power. Lifting the stone monument from the ground had pushed him way beyond what even he had thought possible. The result had been like opening the Pandora’s Box of psychic energy and unleashing a hellish beast that opened its maw and swallowed him whole. Taking on a life of its own, Yen’s power roared through his veins and set his brain alight. The pain was nearly unbearable and brought tears to his eyes. Yet he didn’t fear his newfound power. Instead, he reveled in the freedom he felt, especially the freedom of knowing that he had evolved beyond that of his previous mortal limitations. The psychic power whispered to him, enticing Yen’s mind with thoughts of domination over all that would oppose him. Smiling malevolently, Yen knew that the whispers were less of a new sentient voice and more an outlet to his own subconscious. Despite the physical pain, he had never felt more alive… or more powerful.
The power saturated his essence. Yen could feel it cascading like a waterfall through his body, igniting his nerves. His psychic energy filled him like a clay vessel until he was overflowing, yet still the power didn’t abate. Blue tendrils of power rolled over his body like bolts of lightning, emerging from his back before submerging into the skin of his shoulder. His eyes had taken on a dark, stormy color until nothing remained but the deep, flawless blue, like perfect orbs stolen from the heart of a storm cloud.
Though the power was invigorating, it was also taxing. Yen’s breaths came in labored gasps and exhaustion spread through his limbs. Despite the weariness, he was driven forward by his own rage and anger, emotions from which the psychic power seemed to feed. And all his anger had a single target: the Terran doctor.
Standing before the columned exterior of the Terran scientific headquarters, Yen tilted his head back so that he could see the broad, metal letters printed above the large doors. The words were a jumbled mess to Yen; the universal translator implanted behind his ear did little to translate the written Terran language. Still, he didn’t need to read the words to know what they meant. He had found what he was looking for. Behind those doors, Doctor Solomon hid in his laboratory. Yen could feel the Terran’s mind and taste his palpable fear in the air as though the doctor were standing directly before him.
Alone, Yen strode to the doors. Pressing his palm against the cool wood, Yen could sense not only that the doors were firmly locked, but could also feel the presence of Terran soldiers hiding beyond. They thought themselves well protected behind their barricades and locked doors, but Yen knew better. There wasn’t a place on the entire planet where they would be able to hide from Yen, should he choose to chase them.
Streams of blue energy flowed from his hand in all directions, some seeping through the narrow crack between the doors while others stretched outward, coating the edges of the wooden portal. Inside the building, the lock began to rattle as Yen’s power wrapped its tendrils around the metal bar they had thrown over both doors as a locking mechanism. Despite the metal bar’s incredible weight, Yen easily lifted it from its crook and dropped it onto the stone floor with a clatter. The measly deadbolt lock was also thrown aside, completely unlocking the door before the possessed psychic warrior.
Instead of simply opening the door, Yen’s blue streams of power blew apart the metal hinges holding the massive doors in place. With a psychic thrust, the doors were lifted from the ground and launched into the room beyond. Their weight slammed into the defensive bunkers the Terran soldiers had erected, crushing many of the soldiers beneath their bulk. Stepping confidently into the room, Yen scanned the broken defenses of the Terran forces. A few members of the guard still survived, having dove to safety only seconds before the doors came crashing down on their positions.
Still climbing to their feet, the Terrans were helpless as Yen strode forward, piercing blue tendrils of energy whipping around his body. Lashing out, the tendrils elongated into razor fine points. Bypassing the body armor as though it didn’t exist, the tendrils passed into the Terrans’ bodies before becoming corporeal. Trapped within their bodies, the tendrils slashed back and forth like caged animals, eviscerating the Terrans from within. Gurgling on their own blood, the soldiers were helpless as the psychic energy shredded lungs, perforated stomach lining, and pierced hearts. Within mere moments, the remaining Terran defenses were strewn dead on the floor.
Yen closed his eyes and drank in the power that filled the room. The pungent scent of blood and death filled his nostrils and he took a deep breath. A sadistic smile passed across his lips as he stretched his arms outward, calling back his psychic pets. One by one, they withdrew from the Terran bodies and, snaking around, drove into Yen’s. Each tendril that passed back into him filled him with a greater sense of calm. But Yen could feel an uneasiness on the edge of his consciousness. The power reveled in its own might, but Yen wondered just how much control he truly had. Much of what it had done thus far was a result of his own broken psyche. Eventually, Yen feared that the power might deviate from his desires and begin pursuing its own course.
Pushing such thoughts aside, Yen climbed the broad stairs that led to the building’s second floor. His booted feet clicked on the hard marble floors and behind him bloody footprints marked his path through the science hall. Ahead, drawing him forward like a moth to a fire, brain waves of Doctor Solomon called out to Yen from down the darkened corridors.
“I’m coming,” Yen whispered into the darkness.
Cresting the stairs, Yen found himself in a long hall. Closed doors confronted him on both sides of the hall, but Yen ignored them. They were little more than distractions, set there to lure Yen away from his true purpose. Fearlessly walking down the hall, Yen stepped between the narrow pools of light that were cast by the emergency lights set along his path. Casting only small circles of light, the rest of the hall remained enveloped in a cool and comforting darkness.
Ahead, Yen could sense his prey hiding within a room at the end of the hall. Undaunted by the gloomy darkness around him, Yen walked purposefully forward. So intent was he on the room at the end of the hall that he noticed little else. Yen was caught completely off guard when he heard the safety being switched off on the machine gun to his left.
“Move and I’ll kill you where you stand,” the Terran soldier said.
From his periphery, Yen could see the green glow of the soldier’s night vision goggles. Focused as he was on Doctor Solomon, Yen hadn’t given a second thought to further Terran defenses around the doctor. Freezing in place, Yen sensed another Terran emerging from a doorway behind him.
“Get down on your knees,” the first Terran ordered.
The power bristled beneath the surface. The Terrans were making a huge mistake by ordering Yen around. No one had that power anymore.
“Get down now!” the Terran reiterated, pushing the barrel of his machine gun against Yen’s shoulder. A round fired from that range would kill Yen instantly. Yen had no intention of allowing the Terran to take that shot.
“I don’t think so,” Yen replied coldly. The energy welled inside of him and slithered from his skin like oil. Both Terrans were struck by the tendrils before they knew what had happened. The tendrils passed through the soldiers’ legs and wound up their spines before taking root within their brains. “In fact, I don’t like either of your tones. When speaking to a God, it would do well to remember your manners. So why don’t the two of you bow before me?”
From the corner of his eyes, Yen could see the closest Terran’s body tense as he tried to fight the command. But with Yen’s tendril rooted within the soldier’s mind, he could do little other than obey. Turning around finally, Yen looked at both the Terrans, kneeling in protested reverence. Feeling their overwhelming hatred, Yen frowned. Before he realized what he was saying, Yen felt his lips moving of their own volition.
“Neither of you are worthy to worship me. You’d both be a much better sacrifice in my honor. Go ahead and kill yourselves.”
Their hands shaking, both Terrans turned their weapons upward before cramming them under their chins, the barrels pointing toward their brains. Yen watched as their fingers hesitated on the triggers.
“I don’t have all day,” he said coolly.
The echoing gunshots followed Yen as he turned and walked down the hall. A few feet beyond the two Terran bodies, the reality of his actions slammed into Yen. Doubling over, he felt hot bile spill from his throat as he vomited onto the floor. The pain behind his eyes grew unbearable as it felt like he was burning from within. Hot, salty tears spilled down his face as he dry heaved onto the ground.
Fear finally gripped Yen’s heart. Lifting the monument had been too much for his body to withstand. Now, having pushed his power beyond its limit, he no longer had control. Unwittingly, he had ordered a pair of Terrans to take their own life and, more importantly, they had so willingly obeyed. The thought sickened Yen as it frightened him. If he could so dispassionately order the deaths of the Terran soldiers, what else was he capable of?
Standing weakly, Yen stumbled down the hall. Though Doctor Solomon’s signal was still clearly ahead of him, Yen took a moment to search the rest of the hall. To his amazement, he realized that there was no one else around. No more Terrans waiting in ambush. Finally, it would truly be a private conversation between Yen and the good doctor.
Drawing up short of the door, Yen reached out and pressed the button that should have opened the door. He didn’t expect it to work. He expected Doctor Solomon to have locked himself inside, behind walls of protection. Yet, to his surprise, the door slid quietly open.
In stark contrast to the hallway, the interior of the laboratory was well lit. The bright light only aggravated Yen’s headache, making him squint to make out the details of the room. Rows of tables covered with beakers and vials full of unidentifiable fluids filled the center of the room. View screens, some showing the exterior of the building while many more showed samples of specimens, lined the walls around the room. A single, massive monitor covered the entire far wall, though it stood black and silent.
Standing in the center of the room, an older Terran pulled his white lab coat tighter around his thin frame. Thinning white hair covered his head, though his face carried few of the age lines Yen would have expected from a man of his age; another example of the extents of genetic and biological research that were being conducted within this facility. Yen had no doubt that Doctor Solomon had experimented on himself, granting himself extended youth and virility.
“Yen Xiao,” the man said, his voice strong despite his age. “I have been waiting for you.”
The doctor stood supremely confident, though Yen could still sense the man’s deep fear. Though Yen had yet to say a word, a single thought dominated Solomon’s mind: he knew that he was going to die today.
“Doctor Solomon. We have much to discuss, you and I.”
Solomon shook his head and frowned. “No, we really don’t.”
Yen was taken aback by the doctor’s audacity. He couldn’t help but feel as though he was being led into a trap. But every time he tried to focus on that train of thought, his headache flared anew and drove all thoughts from his head.
Taking advantage of Yen’s hesitation, Doctor Solomon continued. “You were ordered to take me in alive, but you and I both know that you won’t do that. You want me dead, so I don’t see that we really have much to discuss at all. Kill me, and let’s get it done with.”
“That’s not the way this works,” Yen replied, infuriated as the doctor raised his arms in order to expose himself to attack. “You die when and how I say you die! After all you’ve done, there is no way in hell that I’m going to make this quick and painless.”
“Come on and do it already,” Solomon mocked. “You know that if you let me live or, by some miracle I escape, I’ll never stop my research. All the men you’ve lost along the way fighting against the Terrans will be multiplied tenfold if I survive. I will find every biological weapon at my disposal and unleash them on every Alliance planet. I will sit back and laugh as you all die horrible, plague-ridden deaths.”
“Do you have a death wish, old man?” Yen replied, as much confused as he was angry. Whether Solomon had come to terms with his God, he was now fully prepared to die.
“I can’t abide by cowardice,” Solomon said with a grimace. “Either you kill me, or get out of my lab.” Lowering his hands, the doctor leaned forward as though examining Yen for the first time. “You know, I think I was mistaken. You don’t have the guts to kill me. Go ahead. Get out! Come back when you have the balls to do what needs to be done!”
Furiously, Yen sprinted across the room, grabbing Solomon by the front of his jacket. His head spun as the psychic power yearned to be unleashed. It reached out hungrily, nipping playfully at Solomon’s hair and clothes. Try as he might, Yen found himself unable to reel in the probing tendrils. He felt as though his brain were swelling, soon to split his skull apart and spill onto the floor.
“Shut up, you bastard!” Yen growled.
“And if I don’t,” Solomon whispered, inches from his face. He seemed oblivious to the biting tendrils around him. “What are you going to do about it?”
“I’ll tear you limb from limb.” Again, Yen knew that the words weren’t his, but the power bubbled dangerously close to the surface, consuming him from within.
“Then do it already and quit wasting both our time.”
Yen felt his own energy drain from his body as the tendrils grew thicker and sharp fangs protruded from each of their ends. Serpentine, the tendrils whipped back and forth, ready to strike.
“Let him go, Yen,” a familiar voice ordered from the doorway behind where Yen stood holding the doctor.
The tendrils turned and looked behind him, saving Yen the trouble of turning around. From the eyes of the tendrils, Yen could see Buren entering the room, the rest of his team in tow.
“This isn’t your affair, Buren,” Yen snarled in response.
“This is my business,” the Uligart quickly retorted. “I know what your orders were. They were to bring Doctor Solomon back alive. And if you can’t complete your mission, then you need to walk away before someone gets hurt.”
Buren’s thinly veiled threat did not go unnoticed by either Yen or Solomon.
“Don’t listen to him, Yen,” Solomon whispered. “Do what you want to. Kill me!”
“Shut up,” Yen muttered to the doctor. As Buren’s team spread out into the room, Yen felt his attention drawn in too many directions at once. Each tendril sent back the image of what it saw, unfiltered, directly into Yen’s mind. He saw a dozen different images of the room like a kaleidoscope spinning in his vision. The nausea brewed once again in his stomach as he felt his control slipping away.
“Put down the doctor,” Buren ordered.
“Don’t listen to him,” the doctor prodded. “You’re in control here, not him.”
“Both of you, shut up!” Yen said a little sterner. He shook his head, trying to dislodge the confusion that festered in his mind.
“Kill me, you gutless coward,” Solomon hissed.
Yen bared his teeth as the power surged in his body. The power was slipping quickly out of his grasp and there was little he could do to stop it.
“Drop him,” Buren threatened, “or I’ll drop you!”
Yen’s head felt ready to explode, the pressure growing so great that Yen struggled to maintain consciousness. His organs felt like they were being turned inside out as the psychic energy filled every cell of his body. The power was bubbling quickly to the surface and there was nothing Yen could do to stop it.
“Do it now!” Solomon yelled in Yen’s face. “Kill me!”
“I will kill you, Yen!”
Throwing his head back, Yen screamed as the psychic power erupted from his body. Waves of blue, pulsing energy rolled from him, filling the room. Doctor Solomon threw up his hand defensively, but they did little to protect him. The waves licked the Terran’s body like hungry fire, feeding off a new fuel. The flesh on Solomon’s arms and legs blistered and cooked, charring before flaking away in long strips. The softer flesh of his eyes, lips, and tongue boiled and melted under the assault, running in rivulets down his face. Choking on his own gore, the doctor collapsed to the ground as his body continued to cook away.
The expanding wave tossed tables haphazardly throughout the room, pushing them far away from Yen, who stood at the epicenter of the explosion. Hissing filled the air as bubbling chemicals mixed and scored long streaks in the stone floor. The Alliance soldiers caught in the wave were thrown against the wall, their bodies crushed from the force of the blast. Broken and bloodied, they fell unmoving to the floor.
Buren squeezed the trigger on his rifle as the wave rolled toward him. The round was caught by the psychic power before it could leave the barrel. Instead of firing toward Yen, the bullet exploded in the chamber, causing a chain reaction that ignited the other bullets in the magazine. The rifle exploded in Buren’s face, shredding the Uligart’s face with jagged strips of metal. Screaming in pain, Buren was thrown into the corner, where he clawed at his ruined flesh. A reptilian tendril of blue flame emerged from Yen’s body and rushed across the floor toward the howling Uligart, consuming his body. Buren shook uncontrollably as he tried to break free of the scorching energy. Like the doctor before him, Buren’s flesh was cooked away and his dark blood boiled and evaporated into the air.
As suddenly as it began, the serpentine tendrils and rolling flames roared back into Yen’s body, leaving the laboratory quiet and dark. Coughing in pain and feeling both emotionally and physically drained, Yen staggered in the now eerily quiet room. Sparks fell from the shattered lights above his head, providing the only meager lighting in the otherwise dark room. No furniture or bodies, aside from that of Doctor Solomon, rested anywhere near Yen’s standing form, which stood on the only patch of unburned ground in the entire laboratory.
Sighing, Yen felt the psychic power within him dwindling, as though the core of its might was spent. It left him feeling hollow, as he tried his best to regain control over the power that remained. Opening his watering eyes, Yen looked around him at the devastation he had caused. Barely discernable Alliance bodies were cast, forgotten, into the corners of the room, their bodies intermixed with twisted furniture and broken glass. All the monitors around the room were shattered, save the massive wall-sized monitor that had been protected by a thick screen.
Exhausted, Yen turned toward the exit of the room. He didn’t know how he would explain what happened to either his remaining teammates or the High Council. At the moment, however, he couldn’t concentrate on anything other than the horror of what he had just done. He was only vaguely conscious of Alliance soldiers at the doorway.
Yen was startled as bright blue light suddenly illuminated the room. Turning slowly, he faced the large monitor on the wall, which had since turned itself on. Entranced, he took a step closer as an image began to emerge. Slowly, the screen came into focus and Yen found himself staring at a familiar face.
From the monitor, the larger-than-life image of Doctor Solomon smiled back.